The New York Knicks 2013-14 season has digressed into a waking nightmare. They’ve lost eight straight since their defensive bulwark, Tyson Chandler, went down with a fractured fibula. In a road trip to Denver on Friday night, things continued to tumble downhill when Carmelo Anthony missed a potential game-tying shot in his return to Denver.

The Knicks came out flat, falling down 10 points in the first quarter in the Mile High air. But they slowly chipped away at the Nuggets’ lead, and when Ty Lawson missed the back end of his two free throws with under 20 seconds to play, the Knicks had a chance to tie or take the lead.

They cleared the right side, and ‘Melo took the ball into the high post against 6-4, 210-pound Randy Foye â€” a shooting guard not known for this defense. Foye was now banging up in the post against the 6-8, 235-pound Anthony. The size difference didn’t matter. Foye’s low center of gravity prevented ‘Melo from getting to the rim or the free throw line, and he contested ‘Melo’s jumper enough to force an air-ball and preserve the Nuggets win.

‘Melo led the Knicks in scoring with 27, but he was just 8-for-22 from the field. Lawson led the Nuggets with 22 points and 8 assists.